


If You Hurt Him...

by jordieey



Series: Trust Takes Time [7]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: BAMF Pepper Potts, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Male-Female Friendship, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, POV Pepper Potts, Past Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Pepper Potts & Tony Stark Friendship, Pepper Potts Is a Good Bro, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Tony Stark, Shovel Talk, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:15:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24825175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jordieey/pseuds/jordieey
Summary: It's time Pepper had a talk with one Agent Romanoff.
Relationships: Natasha Romanov/Tony Stark, Pepper Potts & Tony Stark
Series: Trust Takes Time [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/992754
Comments: 2
Kudos: 43





	If You Hurt Him...

**Author's Note:**

> You ever notice that when it comes to shovel talks, it's normally a guy giving it? At least, that's my experience. You rarely see a woman giving another woman the shovel talk––especially in regards to a man. Not saying it doesn't happen, I just barely ever see it. 
> 
> Hopefully, you'll find this interesting.

Pepper liked wearing high heels. Some people (in fact, many people) had told her in the past that they “undermined her authority” or that they made her seem “desperate” or “too feminine” in a company that still consisted largely of men. And not all of them the most progressive, either, despite Tony’s and Pepper’s efforts to hire the best, most qualified people they could while still being diverse. 

But Pepper liked wearing high heels. She liked the way they complimented her many outfits; she liked that they made her taller and gave people less room to look down on her. That she had grinded them into the foot of people who dared do so was another matter. 

They could make for good weapons in a pinch.

Right now, as she walked through the hallways of Stark Tower (once Avengers Towers), she relished in the sharp clicks her shiny black heels made against the polished floor. Anyone close enough would be able to hear her coming. A sound of doom, perhaps. 

And if Natasha Romanoff was as smart a woman she seemed to be, she would take the sound as the warning it was. 

It seemed as though she had, for when Pepper entered the kitchen, Agent Romanoff was waiting for her. Head held high, shoulders squared and posture loose but ready, Romanoff looked as though she was preparing to enter a battle. 

Good.

Pepper came to stop with one last decisive click of her heels, lips pursed.

Romanoff stared back, unblinking, face a blank mask. Her posture might suggest she was ready for anything, but her clothes certainly didn’t. The large Lord of the Rings shirt belonged to Tony, one corner tied to make it less loose on Romanoff’s thin frame. Her sweatpants were comfortable, barely clinging to her hips. Even her hair was a mess, in a way that suggested Romanoff must have gotten out of bed recently––uncombed and left to its own devices. 

Pepper couldn’t recall a time when she’d Romanoff so relaxed. 

She put one hand on her hip.

“Romanoff.”

They said nothing for a moment, simply looking at each other.

Or, in Romanoff’s case, sizing her up, it looked like. 

Pepper allowed it for a moment, counting the seconds in her head. And then, when time was up, she walked forward (click, clack) and placed her purse on the polished white island in the kitchen. Sitting down on one of the stools, Pepper gestured to the one beside her.

“We need to talk.”

Romanoff nodded once, still wary. “It seems we do.” She sat down. 

Pepper gave her smile––one that Tony hasd told her, once, was “fucking terrifying.”

If Romanoff felt anything other than calm, she didn’t show it. She met Pepper’s eyes head-on.

“Detective Romanoff?” Friday’s voice sounded from around them. She sounded worried, Pepper noted with some satisfaction. “Would you like me to tell Boss to come up?”

Ah. So Tony was in his lab. Pepper had hoped to drop by when he was out of the tower, but had been unable to find the right time.

“No, Friday.” Romanoff never looked away from Pepper. Not once. “This is a conversation between Ms. Potts and I.”

Pepper smiled again. If Romanoff thought honorifics would get her any kind of slack, she was dead wrong. 

“Very well, Agent Romanoff.” 

For a moment, there was silence, the sound of an air vent serving as background noise. Romanoff continued to watch Pepper impassively, shoulders squared. 

She broke the stalemate first.

“I would ask how you knew of my presence here, but we both know you’re not a stupid woman.”

“No,” Pepper agreed, a light edge to her voice. “I’m not. And neither are you.” She raised an eyebrow. “Surely you must have some idea as to why I’m here.”  
“I do.” Romanoff leaned against the counter, the picture of nonchalance. Pepper folded her hands in her lap. “Tony.”

“Yes.” Pepper dropped the smile, leaning forward so that Romanoff could scarcely look anywhere but her eyes. “In case it’s not already perfectly clear, Tony is important to me. And he’s suffered.” God, how he’d suffered. “More than he deserves. Especially with this most recent development.” She cocked an eyebrow. 

Romanoff didn’t react. She simply nodded. “That he has.”

All right, then. Pepper could play that game. She sat back, eyeing the other woman shrewdly. 

“I am not impressed with you, Agent Romanoff,” she said bluntly. “Not at all. Tony has suffered too many betrayals, and while I acknowledge that I am, in part, responsible for his pain, I am determined he won’t suffer needlessly.” She smoothed down a wrinkle in her shirt. “You and your so-called team have never treated Tony well. In fact, I am appalled by some of the things I’ve learned.”

Thor lifting Tony by his neck; not one of them seeing his obvious PTSD and anxiety; their constant belittlement of him.

Romanoff switching sides at the drop of a hat.

And there it was––a reaction. A twitch in Romanoff’s cheek, her eyes hardening. Easy to miss, but Pepper was far from unobservant. 

“I am aware of my mistreatment of him. I plan to attone, if he’ll let me.”

“And therein lies the problem,” Pepper said. Her hand twitched the desire to curl into a fist. She resisted. “Tony /will/ give you another chance because that’s the type of person he is.” His suffering had changed him in many different ways––some for the better. “And because I care for him, I have decided to give you a chance as well. But hear me when I say this.” She grabbed Romanoff’s wrist, watching surprise flash in her eyes. Pepper remained steadfast. “If you ever hurt him again, spy or not, there will be no corner on the Earth you will be able to hide. I will use every resource I have to have you tracked down and thrown in jail. I’m not picky about which jail it ends up being, so long as I know they can hold you. Japan, Wakanda, Canada––it makes no difference to me. If you hurt Tony, you will never again live as a free woman. Keep that in mind.”

Romanoff was staring at the hand on her wrist and Pepper could almost see the gears working, considering whether to throw her off or not.

Apparently, she decided to use those brains Pepper knew she possessed because she did nothing. Barring the fact that she tensed for a fraction of a second, Romanoff appeared unbothered as she met Pepper’s eyes once more. 

“I most definitely will.” Her lips curved into a slight smile––the kind meant to spark fear, or lust, if the person receiving it was particularly stupid. “But I have no intention of hurting him.” Something dangerous flashed in her eyes. “As much as is within my power, I never plan to let anything hurt him again.”

With a deft twist of her wrist, Romanoff pulled out of Pepper’s grip, smile never leaving her face. Pepper, though, could see the vulnerable edge to that smile, the softness in her eyes she desperately tried to hide. It wasn’t obvious (in fact, many people would probably miss the signs), but Pepper was a perceptive woman. You didn’t spend over a decade with Tony Stark, years dating him and interacting with literal superheroes, without picking up some things. 

Pepper wondered what it was that softened the famous Black Widow over the years. The Avengers, in general? Barton and his family? Or one Tony Stark?

Pepper suspected a combination. 

Leaning back as much as she could without falling, Pepper crossed her ankles. “So you’re planning to play bodyguard, now?” 

The smile dropped from Romanoff’s face. “I think we both know Tony could use one, reckless as he is.”

Pepper thought of the hours she’d spent sitting in the hospital, waiting for Tony to wake from his coma after Siberia. The three times he’d flatlined, when she and Rhodey had been so scared they would lose him.

Just thinking about it almost made Pepper break out in a cold sweat. Instead, she inclined her head in silent acknowledgement. 

“So long as you’re not doing this simply out of guilt,” Pepper said, “I’ll allow it.”

Romanoff opened her mouth (no doubt to defend herself in some way), but snapped it closed when the unmistakable sound of footsteps could be heard down the hall. 

Almost immediately, Romanoff’s shoulders squared, not unlike a soldier called to attention. Her green eyes snapped over Pepper’s shoulder, and Pepper didn’t have to turn around to know Tony was already there in the kitchen, watching them. 

She did anyway, standing and smoothing down her black skirt.

No matter how much Friday liked her, it seemed Tony would always be the one who had her loyalty.

Tony stood at the entrance to the kitchen, goatee recently trimmed, hair sticking out in every possible direction and grease just about everywhere on his person. He leaned against the wall, surveying the women with a look that would have been unreadable to anyone who didn’t know him.

“You ladies talking about me?” he asked with feigned nonchalance. But Pepper knew him. She could see the tension in his shoulders, the way his eyes warily shifted between her and Romanoff. 

She gave him her sweetest smile––one that had tricked many the fool into thinking she was harmless. Romanoff stood at her side, tense and ready.

“Don’t worry––we’re not saying anything bad about you. I simply thought it was time Agent Romanoff and I have a chat. Considering it seems she’ll be around for quite some time.”

Tony didn’t react to Pepper’s words. Instead, his gaze slid over to Romanoff, concern shining in his eyes. He took an aborted step forward, one arm lifting with the clear desire to reach for Romanoff. One glance at Pepper had him dropping it.

Pepper’s smile slowly dropped. He knew. Of course he did. 

“I believe,” Romanoff said, prowling past Pepper to stand between the two, “Miss Potts is giving me what’s called the ‘shovel talk.’”

Middle ground. Romanoff truly did think everything through. 

Pepper forced a placid look on her face. “Oh, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it that. I’m simply… informing Agent Romanoff of her options. She /is/ a wanted criminal, after all.” 

Romanoff didn’t react to Pepper’s subtle glare. Tony did.

“Pepper,” Tony said with a sigh. He sounded exhausted––the kind of exhaustion that always followed the traumas and betrayals he suffered. “You know I love you.”

It was on the tip of Pepper’s tongue to say, “I love you, too,” but one look at Romanoff had her holding herself holding back. Whether or not Pepper liked Romanoff, now wasn’t the time or place. Instead, she waited, trying to ignore the sudden guilt churning in her stomach. 

“But what I have with Natasha…” Tony looked over at the woman in question, his eyes softening. “That’s my business. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t interfere.”

Pepper nodded once, ignoring the part of her that ached at seeing Tony look at Romanoff the way he used to look at her. Even if there was still a hint of mistrust. “Of course, Tony. Your relationships are your business.” Once again, she looked over at Romanoff, who surveyed the interaction with calculating eyes. “However, you’re still my friend. If someone hurts you, it is within my rights to do something about it. That /is/ my business.” 

Tony looked conflicted, his tired eyes searching hers. He looked… better, since Romanoff had shown up. More well-rested. It was obvious he wasn’t sleeping as much as he should, but surely more than he had since the so-called Civil War. 

“I believe it is mine as well,” Romanoff cut in before either Pepper or Tony could say anything more. She walked to Tony’s side silently, placing a hand on his back protectively. She met Pepper’s eyes head-one. “If anyone tries to hurt him, they will not have only you to answer to.”

She looked relaxed, shoulders lowered, but Pepper knew better. Romanoff was like a spring, ready at a moment's notice.

Pepper’s lips pursed. She nodded. 

And as the two women looked at each other, Pepper felt that they came to their first, true understanding. 

Glancing at the watch on her wrist, Pepper looked back up at the couple (if they could be called that).

“I have meetings to attend. I expect you both to have me over for dinner sometime.”

She walked past them, stopping to brush a kiss on Tony’s cheek. No words were needed. His gratitude shone clearly in his eyes, showed the way he squeezed her arm once, gently. 

And as Pepper walked away, she thought that maybe (just maybe) Romanoff’s presence could prove to be a good thing. 

Click, clack.

**Author's Note:**

> This is about the last idea I have for this series. I may add on later, if I ever think of anything else. I'm open to taking requests, although please know it will take me some time to post. I'm working this summer and I do have a novel on the go. Still, let me know if there's something you'd like to see, and I'll consider it.
> 
> Also, if there's any good Tony/Natasha fics out there, let me know about those, to. :)
> 
> Hope you liked it.


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